


Just Let Me Cry

by sweet_fogarty



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alpha Dottie Underwood, Alpha Jack Thompson, Alpha Peggy Carter, Alpha Steve Rogers, Alpha/Beta, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe - 1940s, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Beta Bucky Barnes, Bonding, Diners, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Omega Angie Martinelli, Omega Reader, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Captain America: The First Avenger, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Post-War, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Rating May Change
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:41:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26004346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweet_fogarty/pseuds/sweet_fogarty
Summary: One 1943 afternoon you catch the scent of a skinny Alpha named Steve Rogers. After one amazing lunch, Steve leaves you with promises of a date the next week, only when you show up, he never does.Four years later and the war has ended and you've given up hope of ever seeing your true mate again. Now, you're dating Alpha Jack Thompson. What happens when Captain America comes into your diner with his best friend, and you meet the man who broke your heart all over again?
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Dottie Underwood, Peggy Carter/Angie Martinelli, Steve Rogers/Reader, Steve Rogers/You
Comments: 8
Kudos: 107





	1. Chapter 1

**APRIL 20TH, 1943**

**BROOKLYN, NEW YORK CITY**

The walk home from your job at the  _ L&L Automat _ diner was long and tiring. The diner resided between Queens and Brooklyn and you had to take the subway from three blocks away from the diner to the edge of Brooklyn. From there it was about a twenty-minute walk back to your dinky little apartment. Most days you didn’t mind the commute but your boss, a pudgy man named Dick Logan, had started extending your hours into the late-night due to more and more of the staff being drafted overseas. You’d gotten home sometime around midnight the night before, but Dick had asked you to come in for the early shift today because Angie Martinelli had an audition of some kind that she just couldn’t miss.

Of course, you’d agreed to come in at seven in the morning, if not for the fact that you needed the money then because Angie was your closest and best friend. You’d known Angie since the two of you were in high school and had easily bonded due to your mutual love of Broadway and Angie’s charismatic personality. When you’d both turned sixteen and had finally presented, the fact that you were both omegas only served to bring you closer. You’d spent your first heats, and every heat since then, together and that sort of experience binds people together.

So, here you were, at two in the afternoon, half-asleep walking down the rowdy Brooklyn streets with another ten minutes of your walk to go. It was chilly, the remainder of the winter winds still blowing around you and you yawned, tightening your arms around your waist and burrowing further into your wool coat. As you turned the corner you stalled slightly in your steps, a pleasant scent overloading your senses.

Pine, freshly cleaned laundry and cedar pencils. You took in a deep breath, your chest warming nearly instantly and your eyes dilating. You’d never experienced this before - sure, everyone had their own specific smell, and when you were in close proximity, if you paid attention, you could easily smell them - but nobody’s aroma had ever found its way to you, overwhelmed and seduced you like this. 

It was clear that whoever the smell belonged to was an Alpha, you were certain of this. Being an omega made it so that your attraction was heavily biased towards those of an Alpha designation, and you’d never really found yourself attracted to the scent of a beta. You realized quickly that you were still stood still on the sidewalk and blinked, starting up your walking again but this time you were looking around to see if you could catch the Alpha.

You heard a scuffle behind you and turned, eyes easily finding the roughhousing kids running onto the street. As you were about to turn back around you felt yourself walk straight into someone. You stumbled in the heels you wore, but managed to keep upright; the same couldn’t be said for the person you’d walked into and as you looked down at the man you felt your skin start to tingle.

The man quickly raised to his feet before meeting your eyes and suddenly your entire world seemed to stop. The man was short, only slightly taller than you though his eyes were directly in line with yours. His eyes were a deep blue though as you looked further you noticed gold outlining his irises. He was skinny, sickly so, though he held himself well. His lips were popped open in an ‘o’ shape and you frowned slightly at the bloody cut in the corner of where his smile would be.

As you took in his presence you breathed deeply, your expression mirroring his as you were once again overwhelmed with the Alpha smell from before. This time it blanketed around you, your body tingling with warmth and comfort and you heard a gasp escape from your lips. A blush quickly covered your cheeks and you turned your gaze towards the ground below you, finally noticing the difference of size between the two of you. You were thicker than most girls, your breasts making it near impossible to find modest clothing, your thighs almost double the size of most girls your age. You were never normally a particularly insecure girl, but standing in front of this alpha, who for all intents and purposes, was clearly your true mate, made you incredibly self-conscious.

As if noticing your train of thought, the blond cleared his throat, bringing your eyes back up to his, and reached his shaking hand out, “I’m Steve Rogers.”

His skin turned a bright shade of red as you accepted his handshake, your hand holding his warm one softly as you told him your name, “It’s nice to meet you, Steve.”

When the two of you pulled your hands back to your sides you saw Steve clench his own, rocking back on his feet as one hand pulled up to the back of his neck to rub earnestly. He seemed to give himself a pep-talk of sorts, “Do you- uh, do you maybe want to join me for lunch?”

Your mouth popped open once again and any previous exhaustion seemed to leave your body as you found yourself nodding eagerly at Steve, a smile brightening your face. At your answer, Steve seemed to relax and his grin matched yours as he held his arm out for you to take. You blushed scarlet as you looped your left arm through his right, your other hand reaching up to grip his bicep.

The two of you walked in silence for a few minutes before you pulled up at the local Mom n’ Pop’s diner and Steve held the door open for you, though you could see there was a slight struggle in strength but chose not to mention it to avoid embarrassing Steve.

Steve led the two of you to a booth in the back, telling you that he and his friend often came here when they had the extra money. As you waited for your food to arrive you and Steve exchanged stories of your lives and your childhoods.

You learned that his good friend Bucky, whom he’d known since he was a small child, was more his brother than a friend and had been drafted. Bucky was in town for the next few nights, having come back from basic training, before he was being shipped out. Steve was envious of his friend, though also mentioned how worried and scared he was should something bad happen to Bucky. You learned that Steve was quite the troublemaker and that it hurt him to not be able to join Bucky in the war. Steve felt it was his duty to fight for his country but mostly, he just really hated Nazis.

“I don’t like bullies,” Steve had told you firmly as his fingers traced patterns on your knuckles from across the table, “and that’s all them Nazis are, bullies.”

You could’ve stayed sat at that table with Steve for the rest of your life, but just as the thought appeared Steve blanched at the clock on the wall behind you. He apologized, his voice caressing your name in adoration as the two of you stood outside the diner.

“I’m real sorry, doll,” he whispered apologetically as you stood in his embrace, his arms wrapped around your shoulders as you hugged his waist tightly. You’d almost fainted when he asked if he could hug you goodbye. “Tell ya what, this time, a week from today, you meet me here and I’ll take ya’ out on a real date. It’ll be real fancy, so wear your best dress okay?”

You nodded and smiled though your heart clenched as he pulled away from you. With one last leap of confidence, you leaned forward and pressed your lips to his cheek, blushing at the residue of lipstick that you left. Steve didn’t seem to mind as his grin widened tenfold and he squeezed your hands.

A week later and you waited three hours for him to show up. 

He never did.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Toxic Relationship, Manipulation, Abuse of Power (These are all very mild but it is still part of the chapter)

_ My mother's always working, she's working very hard _

_ But every time she looks for me I'm sleeping in the yard _

_ My mother thinks I'm lazy and maybe she is right _

You and Angie giggled loudly as you danced around behind the counter, singing along to your current favourite song. You and Angie always had a habit of playing the radio a little too loud at this time of night and making up your own little dances along to the hits that came on. Dick was in the back, on the phone with his wife whispering sweet nothings, and the diner was empty safe for the three of you.

Angie had taken to turning the radio up a couple of notches when she’d noticed your distraught expression. You’d caught a whiff of pine and cedar, fresh laundry, and you’d felt the anxiety pool in your chest. The little alpha Steve Rogers had never shown up to your date, and over the four years since you’d never seen him or heard from him. At first, you’d been nothing short of worried, and even now you’d look over the obituaries in the paper to make sure nothing bad had happened. Sometimes you’d smell it though, the overwhelming calm following soon after - but you’d still yet to see his face. You’re not even sure what you’d do if you did see him; would you yell? Cry? Or would you just turn around and walk away?

You’re immensely grateful for Angie, who’d held you for hours after he’d stood you up and who stayed with you for a week following the event, to make sure you’d be okay. And when the war was over, you and Angie had procured a new regular customer - a British lady by the name of Peggy Carter. Peggy was an alpha, with bold red lips and a thick accent. She and Angie had immediately taken a liking to one another, but Peggy was so secretive and mysterious that while it was unspoken that they belonged to one another, she and Angie had never so much as gone out on a real date.

Through Peggy, you and Angie had met a beautiful young alpha by the name of Dot who had a troubled past but warmed up to you two quite nicely. You’d gotten very close with Dot, and while Peggy swore the two of you would end up bonding, you and Dot were strictly platonic - Dot was like a sister to you. After a while Dot had to stop coming, something about her past catching up with her and while she was still in the city and you saw her every now and then, Peggy informed you that Dot was knee-deep in work.

Four months ago another alpha came into the diner, following behind a very annoyed looking Peggy. He’d introduced himself as Jack Thompson and had immediately asked you out for dinner. You’d agreed reluctantly, but that night he’d managed to charm his way into being your boyfriend. Angie found him suspicious and thought him to be one of those controlling alphas. You agreed, but even you couldn’t deny that you were getting older, and as your parents liked to remind you - any longer and all the alphas would be taken. Peggy downright loathed the man and had told you it was a bad idea from the start, however, Peggy understood your reasoning and reluctantly came to terms with it.

The cedar scent grew stronger and you stumbled into Angie who held your biceps firmly to ground you. Before you could apologize the other girl gasped and spun you so that the two of you were leaning over the counter. She pointed to the two men stood outside of the diner - one had dark brown hair, cut short to his head with a broad back and thick legs, stood with his back towards the two of you. The other seemed familiar, a head of blonde hair and a square jawline. He was quite fit, his back broad and he stood taller than the other. You could see the blonde’s profile, and it was clear he looked confused, perhaps distressed. Angie squealed, “It’s Captain America, and that dark-haired fella’s his best friend, Sergeant Barnes.”

You hummed in acknowledgement and shrugged, “Am I supposed to be excited, Miss Martinelli?”

Angie gasped and smacked your bicep with the back of her hand. Dick, who had come out to retrieve his crossword puzzle, ruffled at your hair, “You watch it, missy, those are war-heroes you’re disrespectin’.”

“And  _ total _ dreamboats,” Angie added as Dick returned to his place in the kitchen and you merely rolled your eyes, laughing at your love-stricken friend. Angie watched as the two men started to walk towards the door and her eyes widened comically, “ _ Holy Mackeral _ , babe! I think they’re comin’ in!”

Just as Angie finished talking the blond walked in, followed by his dark-haired friend, and they both went off to the booth that sat against the very back wall, facing the rest of the diner. When they walked in, that same alpha smell hit you ten times stronger and you had to brace yourself against the counter, taking a deep breath. You thought nothing of it, figuring the wind blew the smell into the diner because there was  _ no way _ either of these men were that little Steve Rogers.

Angie smacked your arm again, gesturing with her head towards the two men and you rolled your eyes, brushing down the skirt of your uniform to get any wrinkles out before you started over.

The Sergeant was seated on the side against the wall, and since he was the one you could see first, you decided to start with him. Plastering on a wide smile you flicked open your notepad and angled your body towards him, “What can I do ya for, Sergeant?”

“Just a black coffee’s good for me, doll.” Was the Sergeant’s answer, a charming smile finding your eyes and you held back a snicker at the flirting tone and nodded. Quickly writing it down you spun slightly on your heel towards the blond.

“And for you, Captain?” You questioned but jumped slightly as he jerked wildly, his hand hitting the salt shaker, causing it to topple over. You went to apologize for startling him but your breath caught in your throat, eyes meeting the deep blues that haunted your dreams every night.

Steve looked different, obviously, seeing as how he was twice the size of the little alpha you’d met four years ago. But his face had changed as well, the baby cheeks and long face were replaced with a squared out jaw and seemingly permanent frown lines on his forehead. 

You were brought out of your daze by Steve saying your name, your eyes sharpening as you looked down at him. Remembering where you were, and that this was your job, you clenched your jaw, “What will it be,  _ Captain _ ?”

Steve flinched at your tone, looking down at his hands before meeting your eyes again, “The same’s good for me, darlin’.”

You nodded sharply, eyes narrowing even more at the term of endearment that fell from his lips and you made to leave before informing quickly, “It’ll be a bit of a wait, we’ve gotta brew a fresh pot.”

Of course, that wasn’t true, you’d brewed one before they came in, but they didn’t need to know that. Your breathing was harsh and burned in your chest, and from the looks of it, Angie knew you were upset - you probably reeked at this point. Angie followed you and watched with concern as you angrily dumped the pot of coffee into the sink before fixing up the machine to brew a new batch. 

“What’s wrong, baby?” Angie asked her arms wrapping around your shoulders and you met her gaze with a pained look.

“It’s him.”

Before Angie could say anything the bell above the door chimed and the familiar voice of your boyfriend hollered your name into the diner. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath, “Be with ya’ in a minute, Jack!”

You turned to say something to Angie but were cut off by Jack once more, “Come here,  _ Omega _ , now.”

Immediately your spine straightened and you turned, walking over to the looming presence of Jack Thompson. Angie gasped from behind you at Jack’s use of his alpha command and on the inside, you were fuming but you kept it at bay as you stopped in front of Jack. Smiling, he held you tightly in his arms and planted a wet kiss on your mouth.

You frowned, pulling away, “Jack, I’m working.”

“What, you can’t kiss your alpha when you’re workin’?” You grimaced as he called himself your alpha, knowing your bare neck said otherwise (and from the smell of things, Captain Rogers and his beta friend Sergeant Barnes also did not like it). “Where’s my dinner?”

You sighed, breaking away from Jack and walking back behind the counter. You kept the packaged food in the fridge there, and walked back over to him, handing it over. Placing a smile on your face you asked, “You stickin’ ‘round for a bit, Jack? Think you could walk me home?”

“No can do, baby, got stuff I gotta do.” He answered, causing you to sigh again. Jack grinned, pulling you in tight again and stuffed his face in your neck. You gasped loudly as you felt his nose dig into your scent gland, his tongue sticking out to lick a stripe across your neck. You clenched your jaw and pulled back, barely acknowledging him as he said goodbye and made his exit.

With a surge in your rage, you grabbed the pot of coffee and all the fixings and stomped over to the booth in the back. You placed Steve’s coffee in front of him, biting your tongue before doing the same with the other man, “Here ya’ go, Sergeant.”

“Call me Bucky, doll,” he grinned, and from the looks of things you assumed Steve had filled him in. Despite the smile he sent you, you could see the tense shoulders and clenched jaws both men had from witnessing yours and Jack’s interaction. You went to ask them for their food order when the clicking of heels distracted you.

Turning, you saw Peggy walking away from where she’d greeted Angie and walking towards where you stood. Any anger seemed to leave your system as you met Peggy’s open arms with your own, relishing in the comfort that came from the older woman’s embrace. Though, when you pulled back you saw the scrunched nose of disgust and spoke, “You smell disgusting love.”

“Gee thanks, English.” You replied with pursed lips and Peggy shrugged, sliding into the spot next to Steve.

“I take it Mr. Thompson came for his dinner, then?” Peggy asked though you knew she didn’t want or need an answer. Deciding to move on you turned back to face the table straight-on and asked, “So what can I get you, boys, for food, tonight?”

As you spoke you flicked your hair over your right shoulder, tapping the back of your pen against your notepad.

_ BANG _ !

You jumped, staring incredulously at an angry-looking Bucky who seethed, “‘that Alpha commanded you without you being mated to him?”

You gulped, now understanding the sudden anger from the man. While alphas could command omegas to do their bidding, it was very frowned-upon to do so to an omega you were not mated to - it was decriminalized some time back but it was still seen as a very bad thing. 

When you looked up Steve met your eyes, looking sad and angry all at once but it was Peggy that spoke, “ _ Again _ ?!”

“AGAIN?” Bucky exclaimed, wide-eyed, and for an alpha, he sure had a temper. You sighed, rubbing at your forehead as Angie stepped up behind you, placing a cup of tea and a blueberry scone down in front of Peggy.

“He’s a right sleaze-ball, that Jack Thompson,” Angie stated angrily as her arms wrapped around Peggy’s shoulders, forcing her to lean down slightly. “Don’t know why you stay with him, baby, he’s just no good.”

“It’s nothing I can’t handle,” you stated firmly, giving Angie a looked to which she sighed. 

“Okay, baby,” Angie back down, “Dick says to go home, you’re all finished up here.”

“Join us down at the dance hall?” Peggy asked and your eyebrows raised - Peggy was not one to go dancing, though you supposed she deserved the time to relax. You hummed, considering as you watched Bucky nod in agreement and Steve look at you full of hope.

But as you looked at Steve you were reminded all too well of who exactly this man was to you and what he’d done.

“Sorry Pegs, I’ve got an early start in the morning,” you declined, passing your notepad towards Angie as you started to turn towards the back room. You couldn’t help yourself though, and added, “besides, Captain Rogers has a habit of not showing up.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick chapter but things start to pick up in the next one! Thanks for all the support, my loves!
> 
> Warnings: much fluff, followed by a small dose of angst. It's about balance

“Listen Captain, she’s not purposely trying to hurt you she just -” Angie sighed, running a hand through the ends of her hair as she leaned against a sitting Peggy for support. Steve, Bucky and Peggy had made a habit out of going to the diner after their shift at work every day for the past week, and every day Steve thought he’d be making progress but then you’d say something that made it clear you hadn’t forgiven him. Steve’s heart was hurting, his head was in his hands as he rested his elbows on top of the table. Peggy had a hand rubbing circles along his back and from across the table Bucky smiled sympathetically and ran his thumb along the inside of Steve’s wrist. “She’d been so happy when she met you, couldn’t stop talking about the cute little alpha she was  _ certain _ was her true mate. And then she went to meet you for that date and you never showed. It broke her heart, she spent a year checking obituaries in the newspaper because there was  _ no way little Steve would do this _ . She mourned you, and she made herself move on. And now you're back, and to put it frank she’s pissed.”

“I never meant to stand her up, I swear,” Steve groaned and the rest sighed. Angie left to fix up some fresh coffee and from across the street she caught sight of your frame.

You’d never been more excited in your life - when you ran across the street you squealed at the sight of Peggy and the boys in their typical booth and bounded into the diner. You hurriedly skipped over to where they were, kneeling on the cushion of the booth behind them and wrapping your arms around Peggy’s shoulders in a hug from behind.

You dangled two large pieces of fancy paper in front of the alpha’s face and squealed again, “Guess who got a spot in the showcase  _ and _ managed to snag two tickets for you and Miss Martinelli?”

“ _ Shut up _ !” Angie exclaimed, running over and the two of you proceeded to jump together in excitement in front of the others. Peggy smiled fondly as she held the two tickets, Bucky and Steve watching on in confusion. Angie squeezed you tightly in a hug before pulling away. “I knew you could do it, baby!”

You giggled, “It’s not much, only one song but the director said I could grab as many tickets as I could get. I’m on after that snobby Martha Bradshaw but I figure one’s better than none, right?”

“I’m so proud of you,” Peggy stated adoringly as she squeezed your hand and you grinned down at her. Peggy’s nose wrinkled up after a moment, “I take it we’ll be sharing seats with that ungodly man you’ve been frolicking around with?”

“Okay first of all, I have not been  _ frolicking _ ,” You said with a scoff before your smile fell and you found a sudden interest in the laminate of the table, “and no, Jack’s not coming. I got tickets for him and that fella he works with, Daniel Sousa, but Jack said he’s got no business wasting his night watching me fail at being a singer.”

You heard rumbles come from the two alphas and the beta and shook your head. Angie wrapped an arm around your shoulder, “Well he’s an idiot and it’s his loss, isn’t it? So what’re you going to do with them extra tickets?”

Angie spoke pointedly, pinching your shoulder. The two of you had had a talk about you forgiving Steve and giving him another chance. You’d already planned on doing so, but now that the moment had come you were suddenly anxious. With a blush you met Steve’s eyes, “Well, I don’t know, do you fellas think you’d enjoy watching some girls sing and dance for a couple of hours?”

The smile that lights up Steve’s face is contagious, and you find yourself grinning back with pink permanently coating your cheeks. Steve’s nodding and Bucky laughs, “Oh, I think we just might, doll.”

You aim your smile towards Bucky and reach back into your bag to grab the two tickets. You hand one over to Bucky and then turn back towards Steve, reaching out to pass the second to him. Steve’s smile only widens and he greedily grabs at the ticket, both of your blushes brightening as your fingertips graze one another. 

A beat passes in awkward silence before Dick is calling out from the kitchen, “I’ve got a lady on the phone for you, Sarge.”

Bucky grins and hurriedly gets to his feet, but stops before he makes his way to the phone and pushes on your shoulders until you’re sitting in his spot. “There, make sure Stevie here doesn’t eat any of my fries, okay, doll?”

You laugh and nod, turning to face both Peggy and Steve who are both watching you with different types of smiles on their faces; Steve’s is adoring, Peggy’s is all knowing. With a smirk the woman stands on her heels, “I’ll go and fetch you some tea, darling, you’re looking mighty cold in that little jacket.”

Before you can process it, Peggy is sauntering towards the counter where Angie is and suddenly it’s only you and Steve sitting at the table. You awkwardly drum your fingers against the table, letting an involuntary shiver pass through you. Steve notices and frowns, reaching his hands towards yours, “May I?”

Confused, you nod, head tilted as you watch Steve cup his hands around yours. His are significantly larger than your own, and twice as warm. His touch ignites heat under your skin and tingles shoot up your spine. His smile is soft, shy as he guides your hands (still cupped in his own) up towards his face and lowers his mouth towards them. Steve blows into his hands and warmth instantly starts to encompass you. He continues this for a few minutes before he brings both of your hands to rest comfortably in the hold of the other’s on the table. Every minute or so he rubs his hands against yours to ensure that you’re still warm.

“I- uh, I remember you telling me how being a singer was your dream,” he starts and your eyes shoot up to meet his, remembering that day four years ago where the two of you divulged all of your lifelong wishes and desires to one another. “I’m really happy to see you never gave up on that.”

You clear your throat awkwardly, eyes shifting downwards, “I did for a while but I’m starting to get back to what is most important to me.”

He smiles, nodding, “I’m sorry not everyone is as supportive of you.”

You frown, remembering Jack’s response to your excitement over the show and his denial of the tickets. You can’t help but compare it to Steve, who jumped at the chance, and even Bucky who was barely even your friend but was more than happy to come out to support you. You nod at Steve, biting down on your lip as you look out the window.

You're brought out of your melancholy by Steve squeezing your hands and you look towards him with a raised brow. Steve looks unsure but ends up building up the courage to ask, “Jack, he - he treats you right, right?”

“He tries.” You answer honestly but Steve only frowns.

“He makes you happy though, right?”

You sigh and bite down harder on your lip, deciding to continue along your road of honesty, “Not always but at this point, there aren't many options left.”

“You deserve someone who would fly you to the moon if you asked to see the stars,” Steve says and his voice implies there’s no negotiation. You look him in the eyes and see what he’s really trying to say.

_ I would. I’d give you the universe _ .

You nod, your smile sad as you run your thumb along the tops of his knuckles. Steve looks like he’s about to say something else but Peggy’s reappearance, followed shortly by that of Bucky’s, causes the two of you to spring apart. 

When you get home that night you lay awake, eyes looking out towards the night sky and you frown. The moon shines brightly surrounded by the stars and you can’t help but think that maybe you don’t deserve the universe.

Maybe  _ good enough _ is all your life has in store for you.


End file.
